ES2941804T3 - Relay drone method - Google Patents

Abstract

Systems and methods are provided for a network of repeater drones used as a set of repeaters or links between a base station and an operating drone controlled by the base station. Relay drones in the network can augment a communication link or communication signal between the base station and the work drone. Relay drones can augment the communication link by acting as nodes that relay communication between the base station and the work drone by increasing the communication signal at each node to compensate for the loss of signal power over a distance traveled and/or or providing a route with a direct connection. line of sight between the base station and the operating drone. Directional antennas can be used when direct line of sight is established, which can improve the effectiveness of the communication signal compared to omnidirectional antennas. (Automatic translation with Google Translate, without legal value)

Description

DESCRIPTION

Relay drone method

FIELD

The present application refers in general to unmanned devices such as drones, and more specifically to a relay drone system that transmits data between a base station and a work drone.

BACKGROUND

Drones are unmanned devices and can be used by the military, law enforcement, rescue, scientific, and commercial communities. An example of a drone is an unmanned device capable of controlled, sustained, and powered movement. As such, drone designs can consist of vehicles, aircraft, boats, submarines, or spacecraft of various sizes, capacities, and weights. A typical drone consists of a propulsion device, such as a motor, a navigation system, one or more sensors, and possibly payload. For an aircraft or aerial drone, sensors can provide information to a ground observer on the ground that the drone flies over, such as video information about a hiker lost in a rescue application, information from laser and/or biological sensors about the environmental conditions in a security or scientific application, or a combination of video, laser, biological, and other sensors related to battlefield conditions in a military application. The load can be ammunition, food, medicine and/or other goods depending on the mission of the drone.

Since the drone is unmanned, computer software running on one or more processors on board the drone fully or partially controls the drone. Computer software can control the various functions performed by the drone, perhaps with the help of a spotter. Document US 2016/ 241 326 A1 refers to a communication system, comprising a ground station, one or more airborne measuring devices and an airborne device, which is connected to the ground station and operable to communicate with one or more devices. airborne measuring instruments. Michael Dille et al.: “Air-Ground Collaborative Sourveillance with Human-Portable Hardware”, The Robotics Institute, Carnegie Mellon University, Proceedings of AUVSI's Unmanned Systems North America 2011, August 2011, pages 826 - 845, refers to a multi-robot collaboration system, featuring a unified interface for controlling multiple unmanned vehicles. US 9477226 B2 is concerned with the control of an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) by using a wireless device (for example, a cell phone) to send a control message to a receiver on the UAV via a network. wireless telecommunications (for example, an existing cellular network configured primarily for mobile telephone communication). There remains a need for broader and more efficient uses of unmanned drones.

SUMMARY

In particular, there is provided a method to be performed by a relay drone having the characteristics defined in claim 1. Other preferred embodiments are defined in the dependent claims. Various implementations of systems, methods and devices within the scope of the appended claims each have various aspects, none of which are solely responsible for the desirable attributes described herein. Without limiting the scope of the appended claims, some prominent features are disclosed herein.

Details of one or more implementations of the object of this specification are set forth in the accompanying drawings and in the following description. Other features, aspects, and advantages will be apparent from the description, drawings, and claims. Please note that the relative dimensions of the following figures may not be drawn to scale.

In a particular embodiment, a system includes at least one relay drone configured to: remain within line of sight of a base station; stay within the line of sight of a work drone; passing a control signal received from the base station to the work drone, and passing a data signal received from the work drone to the base station.

In another particular embodiment, the at least one relay drone comprises: a first relay drone configured to remain within the line of sight of the base station; and a second relay drone configured to remain within the line of sight of the working drone, the first relay drone being configured to remain within the line of sight of the second relay drone.

In another particular embodiment, the line of sight of the work drone comprises an unobstructed linear relationship sufficient for one-way wireless communication between the at least one relay drone and the work drone.

In another particular embodiment, the line of sight of the base station comprises an unobstructed linear relationship sufficient to tie a cable between the at least one relay drone and the base station.

In another particular embodiment, a first distance between the at least one relay drone and the work drone is an order of magnitude greater than a second distance between the at least one relay drone and the base station.

In another particular embodiment, the at least one relay drone is configured to move in response to movement of the base station to remain within the line of sight of the base station.

In another particular embodiment, the at least one relay drone is configured to receive a relay drone control signal from the base station that controls the relay drone.

In another particular embodiment, the control signal of the relay drone is not transmitted to the work drone.

In another particular embodiment, the relay drone control signal configures the at least one relay drone to adopt an autonomous flight pattern within a set distance from the base station.

In another particular embodiment, the at least one relay drone includes: an omnidirectional antenna configured to receive a location signal from the work drone; a first directional antenna configured to receive the control signal; and a second directional antenna configured to send the control signal.

In another particular embodiment, the omnidirectional antenna is located at an opposite end of the at least one retransmission drone with respect to the first directional antenna.

In another particular embodiment, the base station is not within the line of sight of the work drone.

In another particular embodiment, the at least one relay drone is not a fixed-wing drone.

In another particular embodiment, the at least one relay drone is a multi-helicopter drone.

In another particular embodiment, the at least one relay drone is a glider connected to the base station. In another particular embodiment, the at least one relay drone is configured to receive a location signal from the work drone. The location token includes GPS coordinates and an altitude.

In another particular embodiment, the at least one relay drone is configured to: remain within the line of sight of a second work drone; passing a second control signal received from the base station to the second work drone; and passing a second data signal received from the second work drone to the base station.

In another particular embodiment, the at least one relay drone comprises a single drone configured to: pass the control signal received from the base station to the work drone through a first directional antenna on the single drone; and passing the second control signal from the base station to the second working drone through a second directional antenna on the single drone.

In another particular embodiment, the work drone is configured for autonomous flight.

In another particular embodiment, the work drone is configured for autonomous movement on the ground.

In another particular embodiment, the work drone is a communication device.

In another particular embodiment, the at least one retransmission drone comprises a directional antenna that points

down to the base station.

In another particular embodiment, the directional antenna is oriented with a gimbal.

In another particular embodiment, the at least one relay drone comprises a second directional antenna that points to the work drone.

In another particular embodiment, the second directional antenna is oriented with a second gimbal.

In another particular embodiment, the signal is the control signal or the data signal.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The foregoing aspects and many of the corresponding advantages will become more readily appreciated as they become better understood with reference to the following detailed description, when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 illustrates an example of a relay drone interacting with a work drone.

Figure 2 illustrates an example of an aerial relay drone interacting with a ground vehicular work drone.

Figure 3 illustrates an example of a multiple relay drone system.

Figure 4 illustrates an example relay drone interacting with a work drone using directional and omnidirectional antennas.

Figures 5A and 5B illustrate an example of a relay drone executing a navigation command with a moving base station.

Figure 6 illustrates an example of a relay drone interacting with a portable base station. Figure 7 illustrates an example of a relay drone connected to a base station.

un ejemplo de un dron de retransmisión que rastrea un dron de trabajo a lo largo de un eje de guiñada.Figure 8 illustrates an example of a relay drone interacting with multiple work drones. Figure 9 illustrates

an example of a relay drone tracking a work drone along a yaw axis.

Figure 10 illustrates an example of a relay drone tracking a work drone along a pitch axis.

Figure 11 is a block diagram of example systems used in a relay drone system.

Figure 12 is a flowchart of an example process for the operation of a relay drone.

Figure 13 is a flowchart of an example process for establishing a work drone communication link.

Figure 14 is a flowchart of an example process for establishing a base station communication link.

Figure 15 is a flowchart of an example process for establishing a relay drone communication link.

Figure 16 illustrates a block diagram of an example system architecture for a drone.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Described generally, aspects of the present disclosure relate to systems and methods of at least one relay drone used to relay information between at least one base station and at least one work drone. While the specification describes specific examples of base stations, relay drones, and work drones, the system and methods can be modified for any configuration of relay drones that can be controlled individually or in groups, and pass information between a base station and a working drone.

In this specification, drones include any unmanned vehicle such as Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, Remotely Piloted Aircraft, Unmanned Aircraft Systems, any aircraft covered by Circular 328 AN/190 classified by the International Civil Aviation Organization, and so on. As an example, the drone may be in the form of a single or multi-rotor helicopter (eg, a quad helicopter) or a fixed-wing aircraft. Additionally, certain aspects of the disclosure may be used with drones in the form of other types of unmanned vehicles (eg, wheeled, tracked, and/or aquatic vehicles).

As described, a relay drone network can be used as a set of relays or links between a base station and a work drone controlled by the base station. Relay drones on the network can augment a communication link or communication signal between the base station and the work drone. In certain embodiments, relay drones can augment the communication link by acting as nodes that relay communication between the base station and the work drone by increasing the communication signal at each node to compensate for loss of signal power over a distance. traveled and/or providing a trajectory with a direct line of sight between the base station and the work drone. Directional antennas can be used when establishing a direct line of sight, which can improve communication signal efficiency compared to omnidirectional antennas.

In addition, the base stations and/or the relay drones may use a communication protocol to initialize the interaction with the available relay drones and/or work drones. For example, in certain embodiments, available relay drones and/or work drones may transmit location information. This location information can be transmitted via an omnidirectional antenna; a directional antenna calibrated for the location of a base station, work drone or relay drone; or a directional antenna that performs a sweep pattern through a space. Examples of omnidirectional antennas can include dipole antennas or monopole antennas. Examples of directional antennas may include paraboloidal antennas, satellite dishes, yagi antennas, quad antennas, billboard antennas, laser or helical antennas. Base stations and/or relay drones seeking to use available relay drones and/or work drones can receive the location information and transmit signals to the location of available relay drones and/or work drones. These signals can be control signals that control a base station and/or a relay drone or data signals that indicate an operational status or content captured by a work drone or a relay drone. These control signals can be transmitted to through an omnidirectional antenna or a calibrated directional antenna for the location of the relay drones and/or available work drones. In addition, data signals from available relay drones and/or work drones can be received from the omnidirectional antenna or a calibrated directional antenna. The data signals may be generated in response to a control signal and/or may be intended to be received by a base station. In addition, available relay drones and/or work drones can interact with base stations and/or other relay drones by transmitting location information so that the base station and/or other relay drones can send the drone relay station and/or to the available work drone a control signal or data signal. In certain embodiments, a drone can be used as a relay drone (by relaying communication) or as a work drone (collecting data to return to a base station). In certain embodiments, a control signal may include a location signal that includes location information that can be used to establish a communication link, such as locations of a node (eg, base stations, relay drones, work drones) or an antenna of a relay drone network node.

Relay drones can be used to maintain a broadband communication connection between a base station and at least one work drone, even if the base station, work drone and/or relay drone are moving. This is also possible when the base station and the work drone are separated, such as when there is no line of sight between the base station and the work drone. Although the base station and the work drone may be separated, a link between the two can be maintained through at least one relay drone. The relay drone can be stationary or in motion as long as the relay drone maintains a line of sight with the base station and/or work drone. Maintaining a line of sight between each of the relay drone network nodes (such as between at least one base station, one relay drone, and one work drone) advantageously allows for more effective and efficient communication using directional antennas instead of omnidirectional antennas that can waste power and signal strength through signal propagation in a direction that is known not to have a base station, relay drone, and/or work drone. This advantage is important when you want communication that requires a high bit rate, such as 4K+ live video streaming (for example, a resolution greater than 8.3 megapixels). In addition, a base station that communicates with a work drone via a relay drone can advantageously increase the operational range of the work drone at higher altitudes or greater distances while maintaining a strong connection link (via directional antennas). or a direct line of sight between each of the base stations, relay drones and work drones). Operation at such higher altitudes or greater distances may overcome limitations presented by environmental factors (such as loss of a line of sight due to the curvature of the earth as illustrated in Figure 1). In certain embodiments, said communication links may be wireless, while in other embodiments, said communication links may be wired, while in other embodiments such communication links may be a combination of wireless and wired links. In certain embodiments, the communication links may continuously send and/or receive information, eg by updating multiple times per second.

In certain embodiments, a line of sight can be maintained by controlling the relay drone to remain within a distance of a relay drone network node (eg, base stations, relay drones, work drones) when flying. knows that the airspace or line of sight between the relay drone to another node in the relay drone network is clear (as opposed to having to move the relay drone beyond the horizon from another node in the drone network relay). In addition, a line of sight can be maintained by controlling the relay drone to avoid known obstacles between the relay drone and another node in the relay drone network, such as when avoiding navigation to a region known to have no line. vision with another node in the relay drone network. These known obstacles can be detected on the fly by the relay drone network nodes using sensors that can detect the surroundings of the nodes or from predetermined information about the surroundings of the nodes, such as maps or other geospatial information.

In certain embodiments, the relay drone network can dynamically change a line-of-sight path from a base station to a work drone. For example, a base station can communicate with a work drone through a first work drone. However, the first working drone may have a limited operational time or suffer technical difficulties and be taken out of service. Therefore, a second relay drone can be incorporated into the relay drone network so that the base station can communicate with the work drone via the second relay drone instead of the first relay drone. In addition, reception to or from relay drones may fail, for example, due to environmental factors or obstacles between nodes in the relay drone network, and other relay drones may take the place of the relay drone. failing relay drone network for relay communication between a base station and a work drone.

In addition, the relay drone can autonomously maintain a navigation pattern relative to the base station, another relay drone, and/or a work drone, such that line of sight between these nodes in the network of relay drones Retransmission is preserved and each node can constantly and easily control another node. For example, by maintaining a line of sight or proximity between the nodes of the drone network of relay, failure at any node in the relay drone network can be more quickly recognized and addressed, for example by dispatching a working replacement drone and/or relay drone to replace a working drone and/or drone of retransmission with failures. Also, a relay drone can maintain a relatively close range with a base station while maintaining contact with a relatively distant work drone. In certain embodiments, the distance at which a relay drone can operate from a base station can be set to be as close as possible or as close as reasonable given environmental or operational constraints, such as to maintain a safe operating distance from the station. base to avoid colliding with the base station. Advantageously, keeping a relay drone at the closest possible distance can make replacement of a relay drone as convenient as possible as well.

In certain embodiments, a relay drone may be a multi-rotor platform capable of vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL). Consequently, the VTOL-capable relay drone can operate without the need for a runway and can be more easily launched from a base station, or a location close to a base station, without a runway. VTOL relay drones can also be closer to a ground base station than a fixed-wing relay drone.

In certain embodiments, a directional antenna can be attached to a drone and move along a single axis, unlike other embodiments where the directional antenna can be moved along multiple axes. A drone with a movable antenna along a single axis advantageously reduces the amount of hardware (such as motors, gears, and drive components) that operates the directional antenna, advantageously reducing weight, power consumption, and/or complexity of the drone. drone while the antenna is being calibrated with respect to another node in the relay drone network (such as a base station, relay drone, or work drone) even while moving. This may result in increased or improved uptime due to conservation of energy use. In certain embodiments, the single axis along which a directional antenna can move can be a pitch axis and movement along another axis, such as a yaw axis, can be achieved by moving an entire drone along the yaw axis, instead of just the directional antenna. Consequently, this combination of movement along the yaw axis and the pitch axis provides a sufficient degree of freedom for a directional antenna to point to any spatial location far from a drone. In addition, such a combination of movement offers a stable data link by not tilting the drone and maintaining a position parallel to the horizontal. By not tilting the drone or otherwise affecting the horizontal orientation of the drone, the drone can be less sensitive to environmental displacements, such as those caused by wind, rain, or air friction. These features can provide additional advantages, such as operation at higher altitudes or greater communication distance coverage while maintaining the operational stability of the drone.

In certain embodiments, the drones (such as relay drones or work drones) may include a lightning rod.

Figure 1 illustrates an example of a relay drone 102 interacting with a work drone 104 and a base station 106. The relay drone 102 may be actively controlled by the base station or autonomously configured to remain within a line of sight of the base station 106. The relay drone 102 may be in a follow me mode in which the relay drone 102 monitors the location of the base station 106 and maintains a location within a distance either above the base station location or behind the base station. base station 106 as the base station 106 moves. For example, base station 106 may transmit location information (a GPS location signal or other signal) to relay drone 102. A processor accessible to the relay drone can use the received location information to autonomously construct a route for the relay drone 102 to follow above or behind the base station 106.

In certain embodiments, the relay drone 102 can autonomously detect the location of the base station 106 when it engages in a Follow Me mode without the need for the base station 106 to actively broadcast its location. For example, the relay drone 102 may rely on sensors on the relay drone 102 to locate the base station 106 (for example, by detecting image edges after identifying a base station in an image) or may follow a signature. detectable from the base station 106 (as a unique and trackable shape or color on the relay drone).

The relay drone 102 may be connected to the base station 106 and the work drone 104 through communication links, such as a base station communication link 108B and a work drone communication link 108A. In certain embodiments, the communication links may include a control signal and/or a data signal that is passed between base station 106, relay drone 102, and work drone 104. For example, a control signal can be passed from base station 106 to relay drone 102, or between relay drone 102 and work drone 104, that controls an aspect (such as a flight or navigation pattern, use of instrumentation or use of communication protocol) of the relay drone 102 or the work drone 104. Furthermore, a data signal (such as a video signal, drone status notification, or audio signal) may pass from the working drone 104 and/or relay drone 102 to the base station. The communication link can be composed of any type of communication protocol from which devices can communicate with each other, such as one or combinations of infrared (IR) wireless communication, broadcast, satellite communication, microwave wireless communication, microwave radio, RF, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Zigbee, GPC , GSM, RFID, OFDM or similar.

The communication links 108A, 108B can be carried out by means of directional antennas or omnidirectional antennas. Since the relay drone 102 can maintain a line of sight between the base station 106 and the work drone 104, directional antennas can be used at the ends of the base station communication link 108B between the relay drone 102 and the station 106 base (via a directional antenna on the relay drone 102 pointing to the base station 106 and/or a directional antenna on the base station 106 pointing to the relay drone 102). In addition, directional antennas may be used at the ends of the work drone communication link 108A between the relay drone 102 and the work drone 104 (via a directional antenna on the relay drone 102 pointing to the drone 104 work and/or a directional antenna on the work drone 104 pointing to the relay drone 102). The use of directional antennas at the end of the communication link 108B, 108A can increase the effective use of signal strength and communicate with a higher signal strength at the same distance or with the same signal strength at greater distances. compared to a system using omnidirectional antennas without directional antennas.

Although a single antenna may be at the end of a communication link, multiple antennas and/or multiple types of antennas may also be used at the ends of a communication link. For example, both omnidirectional and directional antennas can be used at one end of a communication link, such as when certain types of data signals or control signals pass through using the omnidirectional antenna while other types of data signals or control signals pass through using the omnidirectional antenna while other types of data signals or control signals control passes using the directional antenna. In certain embodiments, both directional and omnidirectional antennas can be used at different ends of a communication link, such as when relay drone 102 uses a directional antenna 110A pointing at base station 106 to communicate with base station 106, but the base station 106 uses an omnidirectional antenna to communicate with the relay drone 102 and/or when the relay drone 102 uses a directional antenna 110B that is pointed at the work drone 104 to communicate with the work drone 104 but the drone 104 The work station uses an omnidirectional antenna to communicate with the relay drone 102. The use of both directional and omnidirectional antennas at the end of the communication link 108B, 108A can increase the effective use of signal strength for the limited resources of the relay drone 102, where the relay drone 102 can communicate more strongly of signal at the same distance or with the same signal strength at greater distances compared to a relay drone that uses omnidirectional antennas without directional antennas. In further embodiments, the relay drone may use a combination of directional and omnidirectional antennas, such as when the relay drone 102 uses an omnidirectional antenna to detect a signal indicating the location of the working drone 104 (and/or an antenna on the working drone 104) and/or a signal indicating the location of the base station 106 (and/or an antenna on the working drone 106). In addition, the distance over the communication link 108A, 108B can be closer than a communication link via a satellite in space, which advantageously allows the relay drone system to more effectively transmit large amounts of data, such as through broadband communication, compared to communication via satellites in space.

In certain embodiments, omnidirectional antennas may be used at both ends of the communication link 108A, 108B. These omnidirectional antennas can transmit control data at a lower bit rate compared to a data signal that includes content, such as audio and/or video content. In addition, omnidirectional antennas can use a narrowband signal for control data (in contrast to a wideband signal that can be used for a data signal that includes content). In certain embodiments, control signal transmissions using omnidirectional antennas may include location data for the working drone 104 (and/or an antenna on the working drone 104), the relay drone 102 (and/or an antenna on the working drone 104). on relay drone 102), and/or base station 106 (and/or an antenna on base station 106). After receiving the location data, a directional antenna can be calibrated to the location for more effective data transmission to the location. For example, after the relay drone 102 has received the location data from the work drone 104, the relay drone 102 can adjust the direction of its directional antenna 110B towards the work drone 104 to receive a data signal much greater (for example, video data sent from the work drone 104) over a broadband connection.

The work drone 104 can be configured to be operational for an extended period, such as 6-10 hours or more than 8 hours, to perform a variety of tasks based on commands from the base station 106. The tasks can be performed by the work drone 104 by executing a command or task on a control signal sent from the base station 106 and relayed through the relay drone 102 through the communication link 108A, 108B. In certain embodiments, the work drone 104 may be removed at the end of the operational period and a new work drone installed in its place. The retired work drone can be returned to the base station 106 or other mobile or stationary stations for maintenance (for example, to recharge batteries and perform repairs) and the new work drone can be launched from the base station 106 or other mobile stations or stationary

In certain embodiments, the work drone may be tasked with providing a look ahead of where a moving object is going (eg, a boat, car, bicycle, helicopter). The moving object may be the base station 106 or a different moving object than the base station 106. In certain embodiments, work drone 104 may be tasked with providing an image of a location and sending data with the image back to base station 106. Image may be of possible rocks or icebergs in the water, damaged or washed out roads, shipwrecks, refugees in the water or on land, floating objects, herds of wild animals, floating cargo or debris, oil spills, weather conditions, visual manifestations from temperature changes, people in need of rescue, other moving objects and the like. In the illustrated embodiment, the work drone 104 may be tasked with viewing an area encompassed by a vessel 112.

In certain embodiments, the work drone 104 may be tasked with performing an active role at a location. The location may be local or remote from the base station 106. This active role can be cargo delivery or a payload, such as dropping medical supplies, food, and/or a life preserver. This active role can also be participating in the search for an object (such as a boat, a school of fish, or a missing person) or carrying out a rescue mission. These active roles can be performed automatically through a predetermined task protocol identified in a work drone control signal (such as holding a pattern on an object while viewing a selected object or dropping payload at a nearby location). to the object in an automated manner) or controlled directly by the base station 106 (such as holding a pattern over an object while viewing the object or dropping payload at a location close to the object under real-time control of the base station 106 ). In the illustrated embodiment, the work drone 104 may be tasked with dropping a life preserver for the vessel 112 that is at a location distant from the base station 106 and beyond the line of sight of the base station 106.

Directional antennas can be stabilized on a gimbal. In certain embodiments, at least one directional antenna 110A, 110B on the relay drone 102 may be on a 2-axis gimbal for stability in receiving and sending signals, such as to and from the work drone 104 or station. 106 basis. Other types of gimbal, such as a 1-axis gimbal, 3-axis gimbal, or other types of devices known to compensate for motion (such as drone motion) can be used for stability in receiving and sending signals. Additionally, any directional antenna, whether on the relay drone 102, work drone 104, or base station 106, can be configured on a 1-axis gimbal, 2-axis gimbal, or 3-axis gimbal for stability in receiving and sending signals. Other types of known devices can be used to compensate for movement for stability in receiving and sending signals, such as springs or vibration damping foam.

In certain embodiments, the relay drone 102 may land at the base station 106. The relay drone 102 may land at the base station 106 for periodic servicing, recharging, storage, and/or maintenance. In addition, the work drone 104 can land at the base station 106. The work drone 104 may land at the base station 106 for periodic servicing, recharging, data downloading, storage, and/or maintenance. Optionally, the work drone 104 and/or the relay drone 102 can be launched from the base station 106. The base station 106 may have several relay drones 102 and/or work drones 104 on board so that even if each relay drone 102 and/or work drone 104 has a limited flight time, the base station 106 can rotate different relay drones 102 and/or work drones 104 to operate so that there is always one work drone 104 and/or relay drone 102 operational or in the air while others are serviced or stored.

Although Figure 1 illustrates only one relay drone 102, as will be discussed later, multiple relay drone 102 can be used to create a network of relay drones 102 that provides a path, through the network of relay drones 102 , with a direct line of sight between a base station 106 and a work drone 104. Furthermore, one or more base stations 106 may use at least one relay drone 102 to communicate with one or more work drones 104. In addition, one or more work drones 104 may use at least one relay drone 102 to communicate with one or more base stations 106. In addition, a drone can function as a relay drone 102 for a base station 106 at the same time (to communicate with a work drone) and can function as a work drone 104 at a different time (to execute a command and not relay the command to a different drone). In addition, a drone can interface with multiple base stations 106 to function as a relay drone 102 for one base station 106 and a work drone 104 for another base station 106. This type of network can make the transmission of data and/or the execution of tasks both faster and easier than without such a network.

Generally, both the relay drone 102 and the work drone 104 are viewed as unmanned and autonomous (not requiring constant and/or real-time control).

It should be noted in particular that the illustration of the silhouette of the drones and the base station in figure 1 is not intended to limit the type of drone and/or base station or model of drone and/or base station in the contemplated embodiments. For example, although the broadcast drone 102 is illustrated as a multi-helicopter drone, the broadcast drone 104 work drone 102, work drone 104, and/or base station 106 may each have a shape factor of any stationary object or in motion, such as a floating or submerged vessel, land vehicle, consumer electronic device, or airborne vehicle (eg, airplane, helicopter, airship). Furthermore, the contemplated method and device can be used to transmit data to and from (or between) a moving object or a stationary object (such as a building).

Figure 2 illustrates an example of relay drone 102 interacting with a vehicular ground work drone 214 and a vehicular ground base station 216 . The base station 216 does not have a line of sight to the working drone 214 due to an obstacle 220 between the working drone 214 and the base station 216. However, the relay drone 102 has a line of sight to both the work drone 214 and the base station 216. Accordingly, the base station 216 can use the relay drone 102 to establish a communication link 108A, 108B along a direct line-of-sight path between the base station 216 and the work drone 214.

Fig. 3 illustrates an example of a multi-drone relay system 102A, 102B. In the illustrated embodiment, an obstacle 312 between the base station 216 and the work drone 214 prevents the establishment of a direct line of sight path between the base station 216 and the work drone 214 with a relay drone. Therefore, multiple relay drones 102A, 102b can be used to establish a direct line-of-sight path between base station 216 and work drone 214.

An additional relay drone communication link 310 may be established between the two relay drones 102A, 102B in addition to the communication link 108A between the relay drone 102A and the base station 216 and the communication link 10813 between the relay drone 102B. broadcast and the working drone 214. The relay drone communication link 310 may be established using the same or different communication protocols as the communication link 108A or the communication link 108B. The relay drone communication link 310 may have directional antennas 314, 316 at both ends, with a combination of directional antennas and omnidirectional antennas, or with omnidirectional antennas at both ends. Calibration of directional antennas on a relay drone can be established by first identifying the location of the other relay drone (or the location of an antenna of the other relay drone) by receiving a location signal (for the other relay drone). relay or an antenna of the other relay drone) using an omnidirectional antenna. Subsequently, the relay drone can calibrate the relay drone's directional antenna to the location of the other relay drone (or the antenna of the other relay drone). Each relay drone 102A, 102B may transmit its location (or the location of at least one of its antennas) via an omnidirectional antenna or a directional antenna (such as a directional antenna that transmits location information in a sweep pattern that covers different areas at different times). In certain embodiments, a relay drone 102A, 102B may transmit a location signal that is received by a base station 216 and/or a work drone 214 and used by the base station 216 and/or work drone 214 to determine the location of the relay drone 102A, 10213 (or the antenna(s) of the relay drone 214) for establishing a communication link with the relay drone 102A, 102B.

In certain embodiments, the communication links between two nodes may use a communication protocol that is the same as or different from the communication protocols used in the communication links between other nodes in the relay drone network. For example, a base station communication link may use a wired communication protocol, while a work drone communication link may use a wireless communication protocol (for example, Wi-Fi), while a The relay drone communication link may use a wireless communication protocol (for example, ZigBee) that is different from the wired communication protocol used by the working drone communication link.

In certain embodiments, any of the relay drone network nodes (eg, base station, work drone, or ground vehicle relay drone; base station, work drone, or vessel relay drone; base station, drone stationary work drone or relay drone; base station, work drone or aerial relay drone; or portable base station, work drone or relay drone) can optionally have a communication module using LTE, satellite or any communication capability wireless (hardware and/or software) currently known or to be developed in the future. Having this optional connectivity can further ensure optimal, reliable, and timely real-time connectivity of any of these communication points, or nodes, with each other within your relay drone network, or with other networks (for example, the Internet) outside. of this network of relay drones.

In certain embodiments, any of the above communication points or nodes of the relay drone network can select (either autonomously or non-autonomously), in real time, different types or protocols of communication. This selection may be based on criteria such as transmission cost, transmission reliability, transmission speed, transmission reception or transmission security. For example, the base station system, relay drone, and work drone can communicate directly with each other without using an external node (such as a cell tower or orbiting satellite outside of the network drone network nodes). relay) and/or communicate indirectly with each other using nodes external (such as a cell phone tower or orbiting satellite). Additionally, as the base station, relay drone, and/or work drone moves through regions that support certain types of communication protocols (such as LTE), the relay drone and/or work drone of the base station would operate with different communication protocols (such as LTE), such as for lower communication cost and/or higher reliability in low-altitude airspace.

In certain embodiments, a base station system, relay drone, and work drone may communicate with each other directly but also be in communication with an external actor (such as a command post, headquarters, police station, or other base station). This communication with an external actor can be in real time while the base station, the relay drone and/or the work drone communicate with each other. This communication can also be direct and/or indirect with the same or different communication protocols used between the base station, the relay drone and/or the work drone.

Furthermore, while several specific types of antennas have been described herein, other embodiments may include a combination of antennas with different power levels to provide a variety of transmission distances that are most optimal for the distance and type of data. that are going to be broadcast.

Figure 4 illustrates an example relay drone 402 interacting with a work drone 404 using directional and omnidirectional antennas. In the illustrated embodiment, the relay drone 402 is networked with the work drone 404 and a base station 406. The relay drone 402 is configured to follow the base station 406 and maintain a position above the base station 406 and within a line of sight of the base station 406 when the base station 406 is in motion or when the drone 402 relay is on the move. Communication links 426, 422, 420 may suffice for high bit rate data transfer, such as broadcast 4K+ video of a target (such as the pod of dolphins 424) generated on the work drone 404 and delivered to the 406 base station. The base station 406 may be in motion and/or connected to a moving body such as a vessel in the illustrated embodiment. The base station 406 may share a base station communication link 426 with the relay drone where control signals are sent to the relay drone 402 and a data signal is received from the relay drone 402. In addition to maintaining a line of sight with the base station 406, the relay drone 402 may maintain a set distance from the base station 406 and/or remain within a line of sight of the work drone 404.

As illustrated, the relay drone 402 may include a global positioning system (GPS) unit 410. Although a GPS unit 410 is used in the illustrated embodiment, any type of location unit capable of determining a location may be used instead of or in conjunction with the GPS unit 410, such as a location sensor, altimeter, compass, system Inertial Navigation Sensors (INS), Motion Sensors (such as an accelerometer), Rotation Sensors (such as gyroscopes). For example, a location can be a GPS coordinate with an altitude determined from an altimeter. The relay drone 402 may also include an omnidirectional antenna 410 and a directional antenna 414. The work drone 404 may include an omnidirectional antenna 416 and a GPS unit 418. The communication links 420, 422 with the working drone 404 using the omnidirectional antenna 410 (omnidirectional drone communication link) and the directional antenna 414 (directional drone communication link) may be part of one drone communication link. of work, presented previously and commented later.

In the work drone 404, the GPS unit 410 can determine a location for the work drone. That location, encoded as location information 420 in a location signal, can be transmitted via the omnidirectional antenna 416 of the working drone 404 and received by the omnidirectional antenna 410 of the relay drone 402. The relay drone 402 can then determine the location of the work drone 404, by decoding the location of the location signal, and calibrate the directional antenna 414 to point to the work drone 404. The relay drone 402 can then communicate with the work drone 404 using the calibrated directional antenna 414, such as when receiving a high bit rate data signal 422 (eg, a 4K+ video stream). In certain embodiments, the omnidirectional antenna 410 may be used to communicate control information to the omnidirectional antenna 416 of the work drone 404, such as by relaying control information for the work drone 404 received from the base station 406 assigning a task or controls an aspect (for example, a flight pattern or instrument operation) of the working drone 404, while the directional antenna 414 receives the data signal (which may be of a higher bit rate than the control signal). ). In other embodiments, the directional antenna 414 may also be used to communicate control information with the work drone 404.

In certain embodiments, the omnidirectional antenna 410 of the relay drone 402 receives the location information from the work drone but communicates with the work drone 404 using the directional antenna 414.

In certain embodiments, the work drone 404 may include a directional antenna (not shown) and may receive location information from the relay drone 402 via the omnidirectional antenna 416 and then calibrate a directional antenna (not shown) on the working drone 404 to the location of the relay drone 402 for communication with the relay drone, for example by transmitting a high bit rate data signal.

In certain embodiments, the single relay drone 402 may communicate with multiple work drones and receive location information from each work drone on the omnidirectional antenna 410 and calibrate the directional antenna 414 to point each of the work drones at different locations. moments (for example, to perform time division multiplexed communication) or calibrating different directional antennas at each location to communicate with each of the work drones. In certain embodiments, multiplexed communications may be advantageous over non-multiplexed communications to reduce the number of antennas (and associated weight) on a drone.

In certain embodiments, a relay drone may include at least one antenna for communicating with other drones (eg, other relay drones and/or work drones) on one side of the relay drone and at least one antenna for communicating with a base station on an opposite side of the relay drone. For example, in the illustrated embodiment, the antennas 410, 414 for communicating with the work drone 404 are on the top of the relay drone 402, while the antenna 426 for communicating with the base station 406 is on the bottom side of the relay drone. 402 relay drone. In a particular embodiment, the antenna 426 is a directional antenna that points towards the base station 406. Advantageously, locating these different antennas on different sides of the relay drone 402 can reduce interference between the antennas and provide more space for antenna movement or rotation compared to placing multiple antennas in the same location.

Figures 5A and 5B illustrate an example of a relay drone executing a navigation command with a moving base station. The relay drone 402A of Figures 5A and 5B is the same as the relay drone 402 in Figure 4 except that a light emitter 540 and a light detector 542 are now illustrated with the relay drone 402A. The base station 406A in Figures 5A and 5B is the same as the base station 406 in Figure 4 except that the GPS unit 510, an antenna 512 and a reflector unit 544 for the base station 406A are now illustrated. The movement of the relay drone 402A to a rear position and the movement of the base station 406A to a rear position is illustrated with a dashed line silhouette of the relay drone 402A or the base station 406A.

Figure 5A illustrates an example of a relay drone 402A executing a navigation command with a mobile base station 406A to stay close to the base station 406a. As illustrated in Fig. 5A, the relay drone 402A is configured to be positioned on the base station 406A (boat-shaped). The relay drone 402A includes a GPS unit 514, an omnidirectional antenna 516, a directional antenna 518 facing the drone, and a directional antenna 520 facing the base station.

Relay drone 402A is in communication with base station 406A and receives a location signal encoding GPS coordinates determined by a GPS unit 510 at base station 406. In response to receiving and decoding the location signal to determine the GPS coordinates, the relay drone 402A can move from a current location (shown as the relay drone 402A on the right in Fig. 5A) to a new one. location (shown as relay drone 402A on the left in Fig. 5A) that is substantially above the received GPS coordinates. Consequently, the relay drone 402A can remain substantially above or behind (following) the base station by changing location as the base station moves.

In certain embodiments, the relay drone 402A may include a light emitter 540 and a light detector 542. The light emitter can be an LED or a laser. The light detector can detect light from the reflected light emitter from the reflective unit 544 of the base station 406. The light detector can be a photodiode and/or an array of photodiodes. The reflective unit may be a mirror (for example, a flat mirror or a curved mirror). The relay drone 402A may detect the reflected light from the reflective unit 544 to determine the location of the base station 406A and/or confirm the location information received from the base station 406A.

Figure 5B illustrates an example of relay drone 402A executing a navigation command with a mobile base station 406A while also communicating with a work drone 530. The work drone may include a work drone omnidirectional antenna 550 and a GPS unit 515. As presented above, the relay drone 402A may use the omnidirectional antenna 516 to receive a working drone location signal via a drone omnidirectional communication link 532 from which the relay drone 402A may receive information or determine a location for the working 530 drone. The relay drone 402A can then calibrate the drone-facing directional antenna 518 to the location of the working drone 530 and communicate with the working drone via a high bit rate signal over a directional communication link 534 from drone (for example, when receiving streaming 4K+ video content).

The base station 406 may transmit a control signal via a base station communication link 522 to control the work drone 530 in communication with the relay drone 402A. The relay drone 402A can then relay the control signal over the directional communication link 534 of drone to the work drone via the directional antenna 518 facing the drone (and/or via the omnidirectional antenna via the drone omnidirectional communication link 532 in other embodiments).

As the base station 406A moves, the base station 406A may transmit a control signal over the base station communication link 522 that includes both a base station location signal with a current location of the base station 406 and a command that controls the 530 working drone. In response to receiving the control signal, the relay drone 402A may move (as shown by the arrow in Fig. 5B) to the vicinity of the current location of the base station 406A. In addition, as the relay drone 402A moves, the relay drone 402A can continuously calibrate the base station-facing directional antenna 520 to the current location of the base station 406A (relative to the relay drone's own location). determined from the relay drone's GPS unit 514) and also continuously calibrate the drone-facing directional antenna 518 to the location of the working drone 530 as determined from the working drone's location signal. In certain embodiments, relay drone 402A may use an omnidirectional antenna (not shown) to communicate with base station 406A via base station communication link 522.

In certain embodiments, the relay drone 402A can hover substantially above or behind a base station moving at a speed of between 0 and 100 kilometers (km) per hour. Advantageously, the relay drone can exchange a high bit rate signal with the base station due to at least maintaining proximity with base station 406A and/or maintaining line of sight with base station 406A. In certain embodiments, the distance between the relay drone 402A and the work drone 530 may be 1-400 km, generally less than 300 km, while the distance between the relay drone 402A and the base station 406A may be about 500 meters (m). In one embodiment, the relay drone 402A is in a fixed aerial position with respect to the base station 406 at more than 300 meters of altitude. In another embodiment, the relay drone 402A may be at a higher altitude or a greater distance from the base station 406 of more than 400 km. These distances can be lateral distance, altitude, or any combination thereof.

In certain embodiments, the omnidirectional antenna 516 may detect signals (eg, location signals) from the working drone 530 via the drone's omnidirectional communication link 532 . The detection range of the omnidirectional antenna can be about 1000km, 900km, 800km, 700km, 600km, 500km, 400km, 300km, 200km, 100km, 50km, 30km, 10km , 5 km, 3 km, 1 km, 500 m, 300 m, 100 m, 50 m, or 10 meters The distance can be a lateral distance, an altitude, or any combination thereof.

In certain embodiments, directional antenna 518 may receive and send high bit rate and/or broadband signals to and from work drone 530 via the drone's directional communication link 534 . The detection range of the directional antenna 518 calibrated to the location of the working drone 530 can be around 1000 km, 900 km, 800 km, 700 km, 600 km, 500 km, 400 km, 300 km, 200 km, 100 km, 50 km, 30 km, 10 km, 5 km, 3 km, 1 km, 500 m, 300 m, 100 m, 50 m or 10 m. The distance can be lateral distance, altitude, or any combination thereof. In certain embodiments, the directional antenna 518 may be configured to rotate or search for signals in an area. In certain embodiments, the directional antenna may be controlled by base station 406 through a control signal received via base station communication link 522 .

Drones can change navigation patterns or altitude, such as to compensate for changing environmental fluctuations. These changes in navigation or altitude patterns can be compensated for by calibrating the directional antennas based on changes in navigation or altitude patterns and/or by moving a drone to follow changes in navigation or altitude patterns. By tracking the movement of the drone during changes in navigation patterns or altitude, a strong signal can be maintained via a communication link via a directional antenna. For example, a work drone can change its altitude by less than or equal to approximately 1 centimeter (cm), 3 cm, 5 cm, 10 cm, 30 cm, 50 cm, 1 m, 3 m, 5 m, or 10 m within a period of time, such as 1 second. Consequently, a relay drone 402A in communication with the working drone 530, or otherwise tracking the working drone 530, can track the working drone 530 moving by a same 1 cm, 3 cm, 5 cm, 10 cm. , 30 cm, 50 cm, 1 m, 3 m, 5 m or 10 m within a period of time, such as 1 second. In addition to, or instead of the movement to track the work drone, the relay drone may move a directional antenna to track the movement of the work drone. Furthermore, at least one directional antenna and/or all directional antennas of a drone can be mounted on a gimbal. The gimbal can provide the directional antenna with a stable and undisturbed operating platform and can be free to rotate along any axis in three dimensions.

In certain embodiments, a work drone may be configured to perform various tasks, such as delivering a payload or cargo to a location, videotaping activities within a location, or videotaping a moving object (such as migrating animals). When the work drone is performing a task that tracks a moving object, the work drone 530 may move to maintain a distance or bearing relative to the moving object.

In certain embodiments, the relay drone 402A may maintain a distance away from a base station 406A, such as hovering over the base station 406A. The 402A relay drone can hover directly over the 406A base station or, as in one embodiment with a fixed-wing drone, hover circling a 406A base station. The distance that a 402A relay drone can maintain from a 406A base station can be less than or equal to approximately 10cm, 30cm, 50cm, 1m, 3m, 5m, 10m, 30m, 50m, 100 m, 300 m, 500 m, 1 km, 3 km, 5 km or 10 km. In certain embodiments, a fixed-wing drone may be preferable to a multi-helicopter drone for applications that require a longer operating time or greater distance flown by the drone.

Figure 6 illustrates an example of a relay drone 602 interacting with a portable base station 606. The relay drone 602 may communicate with the portable base station 606 via a base station communication link 610 . The portable base station may be any type of portable device capable of communication with the relay drone 602 and may be in the form of a tablet or smartphone. In the illustrated embodiment, the base station communication link 610 is wireless. In certain embodiments, the base station communication link 610 may be a Wi-Fi or Bluetooth wireless link or may be established using directional and/or omnidirectional antennas.

The relay drone 602 can be configured to maintain a line of sight with the base station 606. For example, relay drone 602 may be configured to stay within a set distance from base station 606, such as within a threshold distance above base station 606. The relay drone 602 may be configured to receive a work drone location signal from a work drone 604 at the relay drone omnidirectional antenna 612 of the relay drone 602. The job drone location signal may be generated from a GPS unit 614 on the job drone 604 and is transmitted from the job drone 604 via a drone omnidirectional communication link 618 from a job drone omnidirectional antenna 616 . work on the drone 604 work on the omnidirectional antenna 612 on the relay drone 602. In certain embodiments, the omnidirectional antenna (such as the omnidirectional antennas 612, 616 on relay drone 602 or work drone 604 used for transmission or reception of a location signal to work drone 604 or work drone 602 broadcast) can be replaced with a directional antenna that sweeps a particular area, for example, by turning 360 degrees of rotation in one or two axes.

The relay drone 602 can decode the location of the working drone from the location signal of the working drone and calibrate a directional relay drone antenna 622 on the relay drone 602 to the location of the working drone to communicate with the work drone 604 and establish a directional communication link 620 of the work drone. The directional antenna 622 of the relay drone can rotate about a pitch axis while the entire relay drone can rotate about a yaw axis. In certain embodiments, the relay drone's directional antenna 622 is rotatable about a horizontal axis, while the entire relay drone 602 is rotatable about a vertical axis.

The relay drone 602 may include a compass 632 and an inertial navigation system (INS) 634 . The INS 634 may include motion and rotation sensors. Motion sensors can be accelerometers and rotation sensors can be gyroscopes.

In certain embodiments, the distance between the relay drone 602 and the working drone 604 may be 1-400 km, typically less than 300 km, while the distance between the relay drone 602 and the base station 606 may be about 500 meters. In one embodiment, the relay drone 602 is in a fixed aerial position above the base station 606 at more than 300 meters of altitude. In another embodiment, the relay drone 602 may be at a higher altitude or a greater distance from the base station 606, eg, more than 400 km. These distances can be lateral distance, altitude, or any combination thereof.

The work drone 604 can be configured for various tasks as dictated by the base station 606. For example, the work drone may be tasked with delivering cargo to a target 630 location or monitoring the target 630 by recording sensory data (eg, video data) from the target 630. The cargo may be stored outside of the chassis of the work drone 604 or can be stored internally within the work drone 604.

Figure 7 illustrates an example of the relay drone of Figure 6 with a physical line connecting relay drone 602 to base station 606. Figure 7 is the same as Figure 6 except that the base station communication link 610 of Figure 6 is a wired base station communication link 702 in Figure 7. The wired base station communication link 702 it can be a physical connection, such as a cable. In certain embodiments, the cabled base station communication link 702 may also supply power to the relay drone 602. In certain embodiments, the wired base station communication link 702 may be used instead of any wireless communication between the base station 606 and the relay drone 602. In certain embodiments, the relay drone may not move due to self-propulsion, but may rely on air friction for propulsion, such as in the form of a glider or kite pulled from a base station.

Figure 8 illustrates an example of a relay drone 602A interacting with multiple work drones 604A, 604B. The relay drone 602 of Figures 6 and 7 is the same as the relay drone 602A of Figure 8 except that the relay drone 602A includes multiple relay drone directional antennas 602A, 62213 . The relay drone 602A is configured to receive work drone location signals from different drone omnidirectional communication links 618A, 618B from multiple work drones 604A, 604B. The relay drone 602A is also configured to calibrate different relay drone directional antennas 622A, 622B, to establish multiple relay drone directional communication links 620A, 620B for each working drone 604A, 604B.

Each working drone location signal may be generated from a GPS unit 614A, 614B on each working drone 604A, 604B and transmitted from each working drone 604A, 604B via the drone omnidirectional communication link 618A, 618B from each working drone omnidirectional antenna 616A, 616B on the working drones 604A, 604B. Additionally, each work drone 604A, 604B can be configured for various tasks as dictated by the base station 606. For example, each work drone 604A, 604B may be tasked to deliver payload 802A, 802B deployable from each work drone 604A, 604B to a location of different targets 630A, 630B or to monitor different targets 630A, 630B using the recording sensory data (eg, video data) from each target 630A, 63013. In the illustrated embodiment of Figure 8, the payload 802A, 80213 is external to the chassis of each work drone 604A, 604B. In certain embodiments, work drones 604A, 60413 may also retrieve (eg, pick up) cargo from the vicinity of targets 630A, 630B for delivery to the vicinity of base station 606.

Accordingly, the base station 606 can send a control signal to a single relay drone 602A for control of multiple working drones 604 A, 604B and/or receive data signals from multiple working drones 604 A, 604B through of the only 602A broadcast drone.

Figure 9 illustrates an example of a relay drone 902 tracking a work drone 904 along a yaw axis from an overhead view. The movement of the relay drone 902 along the yaw axis is illustrated with the rear orientation of the relay drone 902 illustrated with a dashed line silhouette.

The work drone 904 may include a processor 916, a location unit 918 (such as a GPS and/or an altimeter or barometer), and an omnidirectional antenna 920. The location unit 918 can generate location information by pinpointing a current location of the working drone 904. The processor may encode the location information and send the location information as a location signal from the working drone 904 using the omnidirectional antenna 920 through the omnidirectional communication link 914 of the drone. The location information can be updated as the work drone 904 moves and the location information can be sent from the work drone 904 for updated locations of the work drone 904 as the work drone 904 moves by changing location over time.

The relay drone 902 may include a processor 912, location unit 922, compass 924, INS 926 and omnidirectional antenna 910 of the relay drone. The omnidirectional antenna 910 of the relay drone can receive the location information of the working drone 904 through the omnidirectional communication link 914 of the drone. The processor 912 in the relay drone 902 may be configured to calculate a position of the work drone 904 based on the received work drone location signal. Processor 921 can also be configured to calculate a difference between the current orientation of the relay drone 902 and a possible orientation of the relay drone tracking the movement of the working drone 904. The processor 912 in the relay drone may configure the relay drone 902 to rotate about the yaw axis to track the movement of the work drone along the yaw axis according to the possible orientation of the relay drone 902. The processor may use information generated by the location unit 922, the compass 924, and the INS 926 to configure the relay drone to rotate about the yaw axis. For example, compass 924, such as a triaxial digital magnetometer, and/or INS 926 can provide an approximate position and orientation of relay drone 902 using a triaxial gyroscope and triaxial accelerometer. The approximate position and orientation provided by the INS 926 can be compared with the absolute position and orientation provided by the location unit 922 and used by the process to execute a control sequence for the movement of the relay drone 902. Rotation about the yaw axis is indicated by double-headed arrows 930. As the work drone sends updated location information to reflect the movement of the work drone, the relay drone can receive the updated location information and continue to rotate along the yaw axis to track the movement of the work drone. . In certain embodiments, relay drone 902 may have multiple directional antennas (such as those shown in Figure 8) to establish a directional communication link of the drone with multiple work drones.

Fig. 10 illustrates an example of the relay drone 902 tracking the work drone 904 along a pitch axis from a side view. The movement of the relay drone 902 and the relay drone directional antenna 1002 along the pitch axis is illustrated by a dashed line silhouette.

As the working drone 904 changes elevation, or otherwise moves along the pitch axis of the relay drone 902, the relay drone directional antenna 1002 on the relay drone 902 tracking the drone 904 The working drone can move (for example, tilt) along the pitch axis of the relay drone 902. This movement of the relay drone directional antenna 1002 may be performed to maintain a drone directional communication link 1004 without movement of other parts of the relay drone 902. Movement of the relay drone directional antenna 1002 can be performed by controlling a tree on which the relay drone directional antenna 1002 is mounted. Tree control can be performed by a PID (proportional-integral-derivative) controller. In certain embodiments, the directional antenna may also be mounted to a series of shafts (such as a ceramic shaft of a machinable ceramic with resistance to weathering and thermal changes) with a stepper motor. The motor may be a piezoelectric motor with an optical encoder.

Alternatively or additionally, the directional antenna 1002 may be stabilized on a gimbal, such as a 1-axis gimbal, 2-axis gimbal, or 3-axis gimbal.

In certain embodiments, the work drone 904 may be 300 km from the relay drone 902. The 902 relay drone can also have an altitude of at least 500 meters to achieve a line of sight with the 904 work drone. In certain embodiments, the relay drone 902 and/or the work drone 904 may be a long-distance drone having fixed wings capable of continuous operation for 6-10 hours.

Figure 11 is a block diagram 1100 of example systems used in a relay drone system. The block diagram 1100 includes at least one base station 1106 in communication with at least one relay drone 1102 and at least one work drone 1104. The system of base stations 1106, relay drones 1102 and work drones 1104 can be referred to as relay drone res. Optionally, the relay drone network nodes can interact externally with a 1110 network system and a 1130 command center over a 1132 network, such as the Internet, LTE, cellular network, or any known communication network. In the illustrated embodiment of Figure 11, each of the base station 1106, relay drone 1102, and work drone 1104 are illustrated with receding boxes to indicate that there may be multiple base stations 1106, relay drones 1102, and/or or work drones 1104 networked and working together.

A contemplated example of a command center 1130 is a police headquarters stationarily located in a distant city. Usually, the police headquarters would not be able to directly communicate in real time with the 1104 work drone and/or the 1102 relay drone. Through the contemplated embodiments described herein, the police headquarters can now receive and send data, including commands, to the work drone 1104 and/or relay drone 1102 in real time.

The relay drone 1102 can be in communication with at least one work drone 1104, at least one base station 1106 and/or with other relay drones 1102. In addition, the relay drone 1102 and/or the work drone 1104 may optionally be in communication with the network system 1110 or the command center 1130 (for example, through a network 1132, such as the Internet, LTE, cellular network , any known communication network, or through an intermediate system). Network system 1110, command center 1130, and/or base station 1106 may determine work drone control information, encoded in a work drone control signal, that describes one or more tasks for it to perform. the 1104 working drone (such as payload delivery). Network system 1110, command center 1130, and/or base station 1106 may also determine relay drone control information, encoded in a relay drone control signal, that describes one or more tasks (such as a navigation pattern) to be carried out by the relay drone 1102.

Network system 1110 and/or base station 1106 may include a job determination engine 1112A, 1112B that can receive or obtain information describing jobs or tasks and determine task information. In certain embodiments, the job determination engine may include a repository, such as a data store, that includes various jobs or tasks that can be performed by a relay drone 1102 or job drone 1104, along with associated metadata for the jobs or tasks. tasks.

The work determination engine 1112A, 1112B may communicate with the application engine to generate interactive user interfaces (eg, web pages to be rendered by a base station) for presentation to a base station (eg, on the interface base station user name). Through the user interface, a base station user can assign tasks to relay drone 1102 and/or work drone 1104 and provide information, such as parameters, associated with the task.

In certain embodiments, a base station 1106 does not communicate with the network system 1110 and uses a local work determination engine 1112B instead of a remote work determination engine 1112A hosted in the network system to generate a control signal. .

For example, a user, through the application engine user interface on base station 1106, can assign a task to a work drone 1104 regarding a specific property or location. The user may also include information or parameters for performing the task, such as location ownership boundaries for the payload or delivery of the payload (or reference a database or system that stores or can access to property line information), geo-rectified images (for example, satellite images) of the location, etc.

The application engine 1114 may process the job information and generate control signals that can be sent to the relay drone as commands performing tasks for the relay drone 1102 and/or the job drone 1104. For example, the control signal may encode control information specifying which work drone 1104 will perform a task or which relay drone 1102 will transmit a control signal to a work drone 1104. The control information may also include a navigation path for the relay drone 1102 and/or the work drone 1104. For example, the control information may direct the work drone 1104 to navigate in a zigzag pattern based on a selected safe altitude at the base station 1106. This can be based on the particular focal length, sensor resolution, etc., of a camera included in the working drone 1104, such that the distance between each leg of the zig-zag pattern must be a particular distance apart for it to work. there are no holes in the camera coverage of a target location.

The relay drone 1102 may receive the control signal from the base station 1106 via a base station communication link 1118, discussed above. This base station communication link 1118 may be via a wireless or wired connection, and may be accomplished using all directional antennas, all omnidirectional antennas, or a combination of omnidirectional and directional antennas. The control signal may include control information from the relay drone 1102 that controls an aspect of the relay drone 1102 or instructs the relay drone 1102 to perform a task, such as staying within a distance and/or line of sight of the station 1106. base.

The relay drone 1102 may include a relay drone application engine 1120 that can configure the relay drone to execute the task identifiable from the relay drone control signal. By executing the task, the relay drone 1102 can climb to the safe altitude (eg, identified in the relay drone's control information) and maintain a location relative to the base station 1106. The relay drone control signal may also include a work drone control signal, where the relay drone 1102 may be configured to pass the work drone control information to the work drone 1104 via a link 1124 drone communication link (which may include an omnidirectional drone communication link and a directional drone communication link, as presented above).

The relay drone 1102 may include a navigation control engine 1112 that can manage the propulsion mechanisms (eg, motors, rotors, propellers, etc.) included in the relay drone 1102 to perform the task identified in the relay information. relay drone control. Optionally, the relay drone application engine 102 may provide commands (eg, high-level commands) to the navigation control engine 1112, which may interpret or override the relay drone control information from the navigation control signal. relay drone. For example, the relay drone application engine 1120 may indicate that the relay drone 1102 should land at a location because the relay drone 1102 is damaged, and the navigation control engine 1122 may ensure that the drone 1102 relay descends in a substantially vertical direction.

Work drone 1102 may include a work drone application engine 1120 that can configure the work drone to execute the task identified in work drone control information received via work drone communication link 1124. By executing the task, the relay drone 1102 can ascend to the safe altitude (for example, identified in the work drone's control information), maintain a location relative to the relay drone 1102, and activate a payload (for example, sensors included in the work drone 1104 to obtain real world information that describes a target area).

The work drone 1104 may include a navigation control engine 1126 that can manage the propulsion mechanisms (eg, motors, rotors, propellers, etc.) included in the work drone 1126 to perform the task identified in the task information. control of the work drone. Optionally, the work drone application engine 1128 may provide commands (eg, high level commands) to the navigation control engine 1126, which may interpret or override the work drone control information. For example, the work drone application engine 1128 may indicate that the work drone 1126 should land at a location because the work drone 1104 is damaged, and the navigation control engine 1126 may ensure that the work drone 1104 of work descends in a substantially vertical direction.

After executing, or as part of executing the task detailed in the work drone 1104 control information, the work drone 1104 may send a data signal for the relay drone 1102 to relay to the base station 1106. This process can be iterative, such as when base station 1106 sends additional control information from the work drone to work drone 1104, relayed through the work drone 1104. retransmission, after receiving the data signal. For example, work drone 1104 may provide sensor information for base station 1106. Base station 1106 may combine the received sensor information (eg, stitch images, generate a 3D model of the property, etc.). Based on the combined received sensor information, the base station can send updated control information from the work drone to the work drone 1104, via the relay drone 1102, for further inspection of an area identified in the sensor information. .

Optionally, the work drone 1104 and/or relay drone 1102 may be in communication with a command center 1130 via the 1132 network. The command center 1130 may directly send work drone control information to a drone work and/or relay drone or relay drone control information to a relay drone that overrides control information sent from a base station 1106.

Figure 12 is a flowchart of an example process 1200 for operation of a broadcast drone. The process 1200 may be performed by a relay drone, which may use one or more computers or processors.

The relay drone may obtain a relay drone control signal (block 1202) from a base station. The control signal of the relay drone may be received through a communication link from the base station to the base station.

The relay drone may execute the command from the relay drone control signal (block 1204). As described above, the relay drone control signal can control the relay drone to perform a task. For example, the relay drone's control signal can instruct the relay drone to perform a navigation task, such as staying within a certain distance of the base station, staying within a line-of-sight path of a station base or assume a holding pattern around a base station. In certain embodiments, the relay drone's control signal may instruct the relay drone to remain at a distance from the base station and within line of sight of the base station, even when the base station is in motion.

The relay drone may obtain a work drone control signal (block 1206). The work drone control signal may include a designation of a work drone for the work drone control signal to be transmitted. The work drone control signal may include a command to the work drone and/or instruct the work drone to perform a task.

The relay drone may relay the work drone control signal to the work drone (block 1208). The work drone control signal may also include a command to the relay drone to transmit the work drone control signal to the appropriate work drone (for example, by setting parameters for the relay, such as the time when which the work drone control signal will be transmitted). In certain embodiments, the relay drone may automatically relay the work drone control signal to the appropriate work drone in response to receiving the work drone control signal without requiring an additional component in the drone control signal. work directed to the relay drone. The relay drone can transmit the control signal of the work drone directly to the work drone through a work drone communication link established between the work drone and the relay drone.

In certain embodiments, the relay drone may indirectly transmit the control signal from the work drone to the work drone via at least one other relay drone. In this situation, the relay drone can send the control signal of the working drone to the other relay drone through a relay drone communication link between relay drones.

The relay drone may receive a work drone data signal generated by a work drone (block 1210). The work drone data signal may be generated by the work drone in response to receiving the control signal from the work drone. The work drone data signal may include data and/or feedback from the work drone to a designated base station. The data signal from the work drone can be received via a work drone communication link if the relay drone is in direct communication with the work drone, or it can be received via a work drone communication link if the relay drone is in indirect communication with the work drone through another relay drone. The relay drone may send the work drone data signal (block 1212). The work drone data signal may include a command to the relay drone to transmit the work drone data signal to the appropriate base station (for example, by setting parameters for the relay, such as the time when the data signal of the work drone will be retransmitted). In certain embodiments, the relay drone may automatically retransmit the data signal from the work drone to the appropriate base station in response to receiving the data signal from the work drone without requiring an additional component in the data signal directed to the relay drone. If the relay drone is in direct communication with the station base station, the relay drone can transmit the data signal of the work drone directly to the base station through a base station communication link established between the work drone and the base station. In certain embodiments, the relay drone may indirectly transmit the data signal from the working drone to the base station via at least one other relay drone. In this situation, the relay drone can send the data signal of the working drone to the other relay drone through a relay drone communication link between relay drones for transmission to the base station. Figure 13 is a flowchart of an example process for establishing a work drone communication link. The process 1300 may be performed by a relay drone, which may use one or more computers or processors.

The relay drone may obtain a work drone location (block 1202) from a work drone. The work drone location may be a work drone location and/or a work drone antenna location from which the work drone communication link can be established. The location of the work drone can be transmitted at a certain time or periodically from a work drone. Consequently, the location of the work drone can be updated periodically to reflect how a base station stays in the same place over time or moves over time. The location of the work drone can be transmitted through an omnidirectional work drone antenna or through a directional work drone antenna, for example, through a directional work drone antenna directed at the location of the work drone. relay or a working drone directional antenna in a sweeping motion that covers a wide area that includes the relay drone.

The relay drone may calibrate a relay drone directional antenna on the relay drone to the location of the working drone (block 1302). The relay drone may designate a relay drone directional antenna for a single work drone or may share a relay drone directional antenna among many work drones (for example, by performing code or time-based multiplexing). The relay drone may establish a work drone communication link with the work drone (block 1306).

The work drone communication link can be established with the work drone by first initializing a communication handshake with the work drone for the work drone to initialize or accept communication with the relay drone. After the handshake, the relay drone can communicate with the work drone through the directional antenna of the relay drone. Communication can occur by having the relay drone transmit data or signals and/or receive data or signals from the work drone using the relay drone's directional antenna. The data or signals transferred may include a work drone control signal and/or a work drone data signal.

In certain embodiments, the handshake includes transmitting a relay drone location to the working drone and having a directional antenna on the working drone calibrated to point to the relay drone's location. After the handshake, the communication link of the work drone can be established by communicating with the relay drone through a directional antenna of the relay drone.

Figure 14 is a flowchart of an example process for establishing a base station communication link. The process 1400 may be performed by a relay drone, which may use one or more computers or processors.

The relay drone may obtain a base station location (block 1402). The base station location may be obtained from the base station, obtained through sensors accessible to the relay drone, or may be predetermined and stored in a data store accessible to the relay drone. The base station location may be a base station location and/or a base station antenna location from which the base station communication link can be established. The location of the base station can be determined or updated periodically, for example by updating sensors accessible to the relay drone or transmitted periodically from the base station. Consequently, the base station location can be updated periodically to reflect how a base station stays in the same place over time or moves over time.

When received and not detected, the location of the base station can be received wirelessly through an omnidirectional antenna or a directional antenna on the relay drone, such as through a directional relay drone antenna aimed at the location of the base station or a directional relay drone antenna in a sweeping motion that covers a wide area that includes the base station.

The location of the base station can be sent wirelessly from the base station through an omnidirectional antenna or a directional antenna on the base station, such as through a directional antenna of the base station aimed at the location of the relay drone or a directional base station antenna in a sweeping motion that covers a wide area that includes the relay drone.

In certain embodiments, the location of the base station may be received via a physical cable connected to the base station. The location of the base station may be encoded as part of a relay drone control signal received on the relay drone from the base station.

Optionally, as indicated by dotted lines, the relay drone may execute a navigation protocol in response to receiving the location of a base station (block 1404). For example, based on the location of the base station, the relay drone can execute a navigation protocol that causes the relay drone to stay close to the base station or move along a line-of-sight path. direct to the base station. In certain embodiments, the relay drone may have received a control signal from the base station that configures the relay drone to (or be pre-programmed without first receiving the control signal to) stay close to the base station or move along the base station. a path with a direct line of sight to the base station

The relay drone may calibrate an antenna on the relay drone to communicate with the base station (block 1406). The antenna can be calibrated by adopting a specific communication protocol to communicate with the base station, for example, by adopting a specific data coding protocol for communication with the base station and/or by calibrating a directional antenna facing the base station so that it point directly at the location of the base station. In certain embodiments, the relay drone may designate a directional antenna for a single base station or may share a directional antenna among many base stations (eg, by performing code or time-based multiplexing).

The relay drone may establish a base station communication link with the base station (block 1408). The relay drone's communication link can be established with the base station by initiating a communication handshake with the base station for the base station to initiate, or accept, communication with the relay drone. After the handshake, the relay drone can communicate with the base station through the specific communication protocol to communicate with the base station. The communication can take place by having the relay drone transmit data or signals and/or receive data or signals from the base station using the directional antenna of the relay drone. The transferred data or signals may include a relay drone control signal and/or a working drone data signal.

In certain embodiments, the handshake includes transmitting a relay drone location to the base station so that a directional antenna at the base station is calibrated and aimed at the relay drone location. After the handshake, the communication link of the base station can be established by communicating with the relay drone through a directional antenna of the base station.

Figure 15 is a flowchart of an example process for establishing a relay drone communication link. The process 1500 may be performed by a relay drone, which may use one or more computers or processors.

The relay drone may obtain a secondary relay drone location (block 1502) for a secondary relay drone. The secondary relay drone is a remote relay drone with which the relay drone is configured to establish communication. The secondary relay drone location may be a secondary relay drone location and/or a secondary relay drone antenna location from which the communication link of the relay drone can be established. The location of the secondary relay drone may be detected through sensors accessible to the relay drone and/or transmitted at a particular time or periodically from the secondary relay drone. Alternatively, the location of the secondary relay drone may be transmitted from a base station or from any source accessible to the relay drone over a network. In certain embodiments, the location of the secondary relay drone may be encoded as part of a relay drone control signal received from the base station.

The location of the secondary relay drone can be received wirelessly through an omnidirectional antenna or a directional antenna on the relay drone, such as through a directional antenna of the relay drone directed at the location of the secondary relay drone or a directional antenna of the relay drone in a sweeping motion that encompasses an area that includes the secondary relay drone. The location of the sub-relay drone can be sent wirelessly from the sub-relay drone through an omnidirectional antenna or a directional antenna on the sub-relay drone, such as through a directional antenna of the sub-relay drone directed at the location of the relay drone or a directional antenna of the secondary relay drone in a sweeping motion that encompasses an area that includes the relay drone.

The relay drone may calibrate a directional antenna on the relay drone to the location of the secondary relay drone (block 1504). The relay drone may assign a directional antenna on the relay drone to a single sub-relay drone or may share a directional antenna on the relay drone among many sub-relay drones (for example, by performing code or time-based multiplexing). .

The relay drone may establish a relay drone communication link with the secondary relay drone (block 1408). By establishing the communication link of the relay drone with the secondary relay drone, the relay drone can initiate a communication handshake with the secondary relay drone for the secondary relay drone to initialize or accept the communication protocol with the relay drone. After the handshake, the relay drone can communicate with the secondary relay drone through a specific communication protocol to communicate with the secondary relay drone. The communication protocol may include the relay drone transmitting data or signals to and/or receiving data or signals from the secondary relay drone using the relay drone's directional antenna (and, optionally, the secondary relay drone's directional antenna in the other end of the communication link). The communication protocol for the secondary relay drone to communicate with the relay drone may include transmitting a relay drone's location to the secondary relay drone and having the secondary relay drone calibrate a directional antenna on the relay drone. relay secondary to the location of the relay drone. The transferred data or signals may include a relay drone control signal, a working drone control signal, and/or a working drone data signal.

Figure 16 illustrates a block diagram of an example system architecture for a drone to implement the features and processes described herein. The drone can be a relay drone or a work drone.

A drone primary processing system 1600 may be a system of one or more computers, or software running on a system of one or more computers, that communicates with or maintains one or more databases. The drone primary processing system 1600 may be a system of one or more processors 1635, graphics processors 1636, I/O subsystem 1634, logic circuitry, analog circuitry, associated volatile and/or non-volatile memory, data ports of associated input/output, power ports, etc., and/or one or more software processing running one or more processors or computers. The 1630 autopilot system includes the 1632 inertial measurement unit (IMU), 1635 processor, 1634 I/O subsystem, 1636 GPU, and various 1620 operating systems and modules 1620-1629. Memory 1618 may include non-volatile memory, such as one or more magnetic disk storage devices, solid state hard drives, or flash memory. Other volatile memory such as RAM, DRAM, SRAM may be used for temporary data storage while the drone is operational. Databases can store information describing drone navigation operations, navigation plans, contingency events, geofence information, component information, and other information.

The drone processing system may be coupled to one or more sensors, such as GNSS receivers 1650 (for example, a GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, or Beidou system), gyroscopes 1656, accelerometers 1658, temperature sensors 1654, pressure (static) sensors 1652 or differential), current sensors, voltage sensors, magnetometer, hydrometer and motor sensors. The drone may use a 1632 inertial measurement unit (IMU) for use in the navigation of the drone. The sensors can be attached to the processing system or to controller boards attached to the drone's processing system. One or more communication buses, such as a CAN bus or signal lines, can couple the various sensors and components.

Various sensors, devices, firmware and other systems can be interconnected to support multiple functions and operations of the drone. For example, the drone primary processing system 1600 may use various sensors to determine the vehicle's current geospatial location, attitude, altitude, speed, direction, pitch, roll, yaw, and/or airspeed and to pilot the vehicle along of a specific route and/or to a specific location and/or to control the attitude, speed, altitude and/or airspeed of the vehicle (optionally, even when the vehicle is not driven along a specific path or towards a specific location).

The navigation control module 1622 (also called the navigation control engine) handles the navigation control operations of the drone. The module interfaces with one or more 1640 controllers that control the operation of the 1642 motors and/or 1644 actuators. For example, the motors can be used for propeller rotation and the actuators can be used for surface control. such as ailerons, rudders, flaps, landing gear, and parachute deployment.

The contingency module 1624 monitors and handles contingency events. For example, the contingency module can detect that the drone has crossed the edge of a geofence and then instruct the navigation control module to return to a predetermined landing location. Other contingency criteria can be the detection of a low battery or fuel condition, or the malfunction of an on-board sensor, engine or a deviation from the navigation plan. The foregoing is not intended to be limiting, since other contingency events can be detected. In some cases, if it is included in the drone, a parachute can be deployed if the motors or actuators fail.

Mission module 1629 processes the navigation plan, waypoints, and other information associated with the navigation plan. The 1629 mission module works in conjunction with the navigation control module. For example, the mission module can send navigation plan information to the navigation control module, eg, latitude/longitude waypoints, altitude, navigation speed, so that the navigation control module can automatically pilot the drone.

The drone can have multiple devices attached to it for data collection. For example, photographic camera 1649, video cameras, infrared camera, multispectral camera and Lidar, radio transceiver, sonar, TCAS (traffic collision avoidance system). The data collected by the devices may be stored in the device collecting the data, or the data may be stored in non-volatile memory 1618 of the drone processing system 1600.

The Drone Processing System 1600 can be coupled to multiple 1659 Antennas, Radios, and Transmitters for manual control of the drone and for wired or wireless data transmission to and from the Drone Primary Processing System 1600 and, optionally, the Drone Processing System 1600. 1602 secondary drone processing. The drone may use one or more communications subsystems, such as a wired or wireless communications subsystem, to facilitate communication to and from the drone. Wireless communication subsystems may include antennas, radio transceivers, and infrared, ultrasonic, optical, and electromagnetic devices. Wired communication systems may include ports such as Ethernet, USB ports, serial ports, or other types of ports to establish a wired connection to the drone with other devices, such as a ground control system, cloud-based system, or other devices. eg a mobile phone, tablet, personal computer, display monitor, other network-enabled devices. The drone can use a lightweight cable connected to a ground base station to communicate with the drone. The connected cable can be removably attached to the drone, for example by means of a magnetic coupler.

Navigation data logs can be generated by reading various information from the drone's sensors and operating system and storing the information in non-volatile memory. Data logs can include a combination of various data such as time, altitude, heading, ambient temperature, processor temperatures, pressure, battery level, fuel level, absolute or relative position , GPS coordinates, pitch, roll, yaw, ground speed, humidity level, speed, acceleration and contingency information. The foregoing is not intended to be limiting, and other data may be captured and stored in browsing data logs. The navigation data records may be stored on removable media and the media may be installed in the ground control system. Alternatively, the data logs can be transmitted to the base station, secondary relay drone, command center, or network system.

With the operating system, modules, programs or instructions can be made to carry out navigation operations, contingency maneuvers and other functions. In some implementations, the operating system 1620 may be a real-time operating system (RTOS), UNIX, LINUX, ^or SX, WINDOWS, ANDROID, or another operating system. In addition, other software modules and applications may run on the operating system, such as a navigation control module 1622, a contingency module 1624, an application module 1626, and a database module 1628. Typically, critical navigation functions will be performed using the 1600 drone processing system. The operating system 1620 may include instructions for handling basic system services and for performing hardware-dependent tasks.

In addition to the drone's primary processing system 1600, a secondary processing system 1602 may be used to run another operating system to perform other functions. A drone secondary processing system 1602 may be a system of one or more computers, or software running on a system of one or more computers, that communicates with or maintains one or more databases. The drone secondary processing system 1602 may be a system of one or more processors 1694, graphics processors 1692, I/O subsystem 1693, logic circuitry, analog circuitry, associated volatile and/or non-volatile memory, data ports of associated input/output, power ports, etc., and/or one or more software processing running one or more processors or computers. 1670 memory may include non-volatile memory, such as one or more magnetic disk storage devices, solid-state hard drives, flash memory. Other volatile memory, such as RAM, DRAM, SRAM, can be used to store data while the drone is operational.

Ideally, the modules, applications and other functions running on the secondary processing system 1602 will be non-critical functions in nature, meaning if the function fails, the drone will still be able to operate safely. In some implementations, the 1672 operating system may be based on a real-time operating system (RTOS), UNIX, LINUX, OS X, WINDOWS, ANDROID, or another operating system. In addition, other software modules and applications can run on the 1672 operating system, such as a 1678 module of application, a database module 1680, etc., (for example, modules 1672-1680). The operating system 1602 may include instructions for handling basic system services and for performing hardware-dependent tasks.

In addition, controllers 1646 can be used to interface and operate a payload device or sensor 1648 and other sensors or devices such as a photo camera, 1649 video camera, infrared camera, multispectral camera, stereo camera pair, lidar, transceiver. radio, sonar, laser radar, altimeter, TCAS (traffic collision avoidance system), ADS-B (automatic dependent surveillance-transmission) transponder. Optionally, the secondary processing system 1602 may have controllers attached to it to control sensors or payload devices.

Each of the processes, methods, and algorithms described in the preceding sections may be fully or partially incorporated and automated by code modules executed by one or more computer systems or computer processors comprising computer hardware. The code modules (or "engines") may be stored on any type of non-transient computer-readable media or computer storage device, such as hard drives, solid-state memory, optical disk, and/or the like. Systems and modules can also be transmitted as generated data signals (for example, as part of a carrier wave or other analog or digital propagated signal) on a variety of computer-readable transmission media, including wireless and wired, and can take a variety of forms (for example, as part of a single, single or multiplexed analog signal, or as multiple discrete digital packets or frames). Processes and algorithms can be partly or fully implemented in application-specific circuitry. The results of the disclosed processes and process steps may be stored, persistently or not, in any type of non-transient computer storage, such as volatile or non-volatile storage.

In general, the terms "engine" and "module" as used in this document refer to logic embedded in hardware or firmware, or a set of software instructions, possibly with input and output points, written in a programming language, such as Java, Lua, C, or C++. A software module can be compiled and linked to an executable program, installed in a dynamic link library, or written in an interpreted programming language such as BASIC, Perl, or Python. It will be appreciated that software modules may be called from other modules or themselves, and/or may be invoked in response to detected events or interrupts. Software modules configured to run on computing devices may be provided on one or more computer-readable media, such as compact discs, digital video discs, flash drives, or other tangible media. Said software code may be stored, in whole or in part, in a memory device of the executing computing device. Software instructions may be embedded in the firmware, such as an EPROM. It will further be appreciated that hardware modules may be comprised of connected logic units, such as gates and flip-flops, and/or may be comprised of programmable units, such as processors or arrays of programmable gates. The modules described herein are preferably implemented as software modules, but may be represented in hardware or firmware. Generally, the modules described herein refer to logical modules that can be combined with other modules or divided into sub-modules regardless of their physical organization or storage. Electronic data sources can include databases, volatile/non-volatile memory, and any memory system or subsystem that holds information.

The various illustrative logic blocks and modules described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein may be implemented or realized by a machine, such as a general purpose processor, digital signal processor (DSP), application specific integrated circuit (ASIC ), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, transistor logic or discrete gates, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. A general purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but alternatively, the processor may be a controller, microcontroller, or state machine, combinations thereof, or the like. A processor may include electrical circuitry configured to process computer-executable instructions. In another embodiment, a processor includes an FPGA or other programmable device that performs logic operations without processing computer-executable instructions. A processor can also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, eg, a combination of DSP and microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors together with a DSP core, or any other similar configuration. Although described herein primarily with respect to digital technology, a processor may also include primarily analog components. For example, some or all of the signal processing algorithms described herein may be implemented in analog circuits or mixed analog and digital circuits. A computing environment can include any type of computing system, including, but not limited to, a microprocessor-based computing system, mainframe computer, digital signal processor, portable computing device, device driver, or computing engine within a electrical appliance, to name a few.

Elements of a method, process, or algorithm described in connection with the embodiments described herein may be embodied directly in hardware, in a software module stored in one or more memory devices and executed by one or more processors, or in a combination of the two. A software module may reside in RAM memory, flash memory, ROM memory, EPROM memory, EEPROM memory, registers, hard disk, removable disk, CD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium or media. non-transient computer readable storage or physical computer storage known in the art. An exemplary storage medium may be coupled to the processor such that the processor can read information from the storage medium and write information thereto. Alternatively, the storage medium may be an integral part of the processor. The storage medium can be volatile or non-volatile. The processor and storage medium may reside in an ASIC. The ASIC may reside in a user terminal. Alternatively, the processor and storage medium may reside as discrete components in a user terminal.

Conditional language used herein, such as, but not limited to, “may”, “could”, “could”, “for example” and the like, unless specifically stated otherwise, or otherwise understood within the context as used is generally intended to convey that certain embodiments include, while other embodiments do not, certain features, elements, and/or steps. Therefore, such conditional language is generally not intended to imply that the features, elements, and/or steps are in any way required for one or more implementations or that one or more implementations necessarily include a logic for deciding, with or without input or direction from the user. author, if these characteristics, elements and/or steps are included or will be carried out in any particular realization. The terms "comprising", "including", "having" and the like are synonymous and are used inclusively, openly, and do not exclude additional elements, characteristics, acts, operations, etc. Furthermore, the term "or" is used in its inclusive sense (and not in its exclusive sense) so that when used, for example, to connect a list of items, the term "or" means one, some, or all of the list items. Conjunctive language such as the phrase “at least one of X, Y, and Z”, unless specifically stated otherwise, is otherwise understood with the context that is generally used to convey that an element, term, etc. it may be X, Y, or Z. Therefore, such conjunctive language is generally not intended to imply that certain embodiments require that at least one of X, at least one of Y, and at least one of Z each be present.

The term “a/an”, as used in this document, should have an inclusive rather than an exclusive interpretation. For example, unless specifically stated, the term “a/an” should not be construed as “exactly one/an” or “one/an and only one/an”; instead, the term "one/an" means "one/one or more" or "at least one/an", whether used in the claims or elsewhere in the specification and regardless of uses of quantifiers. as "at least one/one", "one/one or more", or "a plurality" elsewhere in the claims or specification.

The term "comprising" as used herein should be interpreted as inclusive rather than exclusive. For example, a general-purpose computer comprising one or more processors should not be construed as exclusive of other computer components and possibly includes components such as memory, input/output devices, and/or network interfaces, among others.

While certain exemplary embodiments have been described, these embodiments have been presented by way of example only and are not intended to limit the scope of the disclosure.

The true scope of the invention is defined by the text of the appended claims.

Claims (17)

1. A method to be performed by a relay drone, comprising the steps of: receiving, at the relay drone (102), a relay drone control signal generated by a base station (106), the relay drone (102) being configured to maintain a navigation pattern in response to receiving the relay drone control signal; receiving a work drone control signal generated by the base station (106), the work drone control signal being configured to control a work drone (104); sending the work drone control signal to a location of the work drone; receiving a data signal generated by the working drone (104); send the data signal to a base station location; and characterized in that it also includes the stage of: moving from a first relay drone location to a second relay drone location with higher working drone control signal reception than the first relay drone location. The method according to claim 1, comprising: receive, in an omnidirectional antenna (410), the location of the work drone; and sending, in a directional antenna (414), the control signal of the work drone to the location of the work drone. The method according to claim 2, comprising: calibrating the directional antenna (1002) to the location of the work drone in response to receiving the location of the work drone. The method of claim 3, wherein calibrating the directional antenna (1002) comprises pivoting the directional antenna (1002) along a pitch axis and moving the relay drone (902) along a pitch axis. yaw. The method according to claim 2, comprising: receive, in the directional antenna (1002), the data signal generated by the working drone (104). The method according to claim 2, wherein the directional antenna (414) is stabilized via a gimbal. The method according to claim 1, comprising: receiving, in a directional antenna (426; 520) oriented towards the base station, the control signal of the retransmission drone and the control signal of the work drone; and send, in directional antenna (426; 520) oriented towards the base station, the data signal. The method of claim 7, wherein the relay drone control signal includes an indication of base station movement. The method according to claim 1, comprising: receive a global command signal that overrides the control signal of the relay drone and the control signal of the work drone. The method according to claim 1, wherein the relay drone control signal and the work drone control signal are received via a cable (702) between the relay drone (602) and the station. (606) basis. The method according to claim 1, wherein the data signal is a video signal with a resolution of 4K or higher. The method according to claim 1, comprising: sending the control signal of the work drone to a second relay drone (102B) which sends the control signal of the work drone to the location of the work drone. The method according to claim 1, wherein the navigation pattern comprises: a line of sight to the base station (106); and a line of sight with the working drone (104). The method of claim 1, wherein the navigation pattern comprises hovering directly over the base station (106) at a set distance. The method according to claim 1, wherein the navigation pattern comprises a flight pattern. The method according to claim 1, wherein the navigation pattern comprises a path over a set of paths. The method according to claim 1, comprising: moving from a first relay drone location to a second relay drone location with higher data signal reception than the first relay drone location.